“Everything was set to go and the producers were planning to announce that Jussie and Zachary Quinto were starring in the play last month,” said one Broadway insider.

“Everyone was so supportive after the attack and then suddenly, everything shifted.”

It was all on account of a shock:

Another source close to the production reiterated this, and said that the events of the last few months have left them in shock.

And it was a great missed opportunity:

“Here is a kid who is on a hit television show, has made a name for himself, and gets the chance of a lifetime,” said that source.

“He would have come off the sixth season of Empire and kicked off the next leg of his career with a role on Broadway. And not just that, the lead role in one of the best plays of the century in his Broadway debut.”

That source then added: “Why on earth would someone throw that all away.”

It’s a good question.

And the impact of his decisions continues.

Jussie had appeared to be all in. But in the end, the Broadway show followed the edict of its title: They Took Him Out.

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